The U.S. national team that will gather in January in preparation for games against Venezuela and Panama is long on promise but short on experience. Only three members—Benny Feilhaber, Ricardo Clark and Heath Pearce—have worn at least 20 caps, and they played a combined seven minutes in a U.S. jersey in 2011.

Coach Jurgen Klinsmann is looking for depth. He’s looking for players on the program’s fringe who might make a statement and push for minutes during World Cup qualifying next summer. The results against Venezuela and Panama largely are incidental.

But the games still must be played, and the man who likely will anchor the U.S. midfield, perhaps as captain, has proven to be an early flashpoint among fans in Klinsmann’s first few months in charge.

And the coach knows it.

During a conversation with Sporting News last month in Paris, Klinsmann was asked about the criticism he faced for his selections. The question did not reference any player in particular.

“My job is to develop a team that works hand-in-hand, that covers their weaknesses and expresses their strengths. There might be some decision where the fan says, 'I don’t get that,' but hopefully over time they will understand why I’m doing certain things,” Klinsmann said in response.

“Some may say, 'Why is there a Kyle Beckerman right now occupying the No. 6 (defensive midfielder) role, when we have Jermaine Jones playing for Schalke or Michael (Bradley) in Verona and they’re really good players?' ”

Klinsmann was aware there were questions about Beckerman, the easy-going, dreadlocked Real Salt Lake midfielder who has become a surprising fixture under the new coach.

Beckerman, 29, had played just 12 times for his country when Klinsmann took over for Bob Bradley in early August. He has appeared in six of seven games since and has started the past four, including both U.S. wins.

At an age when most international players are facing the denouement of their national team careers, Beckerman’s is just beginning.

Klinsmann explained why.

“Right now, what I tell him to do, he’s doing it 100 percent,” the coach said. “Is he the playmaker? No. That’s why he has a 6 on his back, not a 10. I don’t expect him to go forward and score goals and make the killer pass. This is not Kyle Beckerman.

"Kyle Beckerman is one that recovers me a ton of balls, backs up my two center backs, does that role, screens around there and then passes it simply to the next guy.”

Beckerman recognizes his strengths and weaknesses and makes it work. He has been the glue that holds RSL together, a key figure in the club's rise from also-ran to one of the continent’s elite teams.

For a coach like Klinsmann, who is building a program somewhat from scratch, knowing exactly what he’s going to get from a key position is quite comforting.

This season arguably was the best of Beckerman’s 12-year pro career. An early favorite to win the MLS title, Real Salt Lake sustained the loss of playmaker Javier Morales in early May. That, combined with a heartbreaking defeat in the CONCACAF Champions League finals (Beckerman missed the 1-0 setback in the second leg) sent RSL reeling.

Beckerman, the captain, upped his game, set a career high in assists (nine) and was an MVP candidate up until a foolish red card in late September resulted in a three-game suspension.

“As is the case with a lot of things about our club, it kind of takes a while to garner appreciation,” Salt Lake coach Jason Kreis told Sporting News when asked about Beckerman’s surge to the national team forefront. “We’re not a big market. We’re not a big city. We don’t have glitz and glamour. But in my opinion, Kyle has been instrumental in all of our success that we had.”

The opinions of Klinsmann and Kreis haven’t been enough to sway all those doubting whether Beckerman belongs. Some say he lacks the speed, with and without the ball, to be effective at the international level. Others argue that the competition for minutes in the U.S. midfield is too intense to justify deploying a player of Beckerman’s pedigree.

But Klinsmann clearly likes what he sees in Beckerman and certainly hasn’t exhausted the benefit of the doubt due just about any new coach. As Klinsmann continues to tinker with personnel and formations, Beckerman provides predictability and someone who meshes well with others.

“The key element when you analyze a player is always what he’s capable of doing on the field,” Klinsmann said. "That is the key. It’s the quality of the player—how I read the player—then it’s the quality of the player within our concept.

“What is he giving this specific team and how can I put the puzzle together with everyone’s strengths and weaknesses so the weaknesses are always balanced out with the strengths of somebody next to him?

"I need to make very important decisions on who in midfield fits the best. Maybe their might be somebody on the bench that thinks, 'I have to play there. I’m better than these guys.' But it doesn’t match into our overall picture. The fan will say, ‘That’s terrible about how that guy isn’t playing. It’s impossible.’ He might individually seem like a better player, but I have to read and say, ‘He might be a better individual player but he doesn’t help us as a team.’ ”

Every coach has his pet players. Soccer is a subjective exercise. Fans ridiculed Bob Bradley for his allegiance to left back Jonathan Bornstein, but when called up on in the World Cup against Algeria and Ghana Bornstein was more than up to the task. Algeria was shut out, and Ghana’s goals came through the middle.

Beckerman only can hope that after more than a decade of striving, he gets a similar opportunity.

“It feels great. That’s all I ever wanted. Just give me a chance to compete for spot,” Beckerman told Sporting News. “I just wanted a fair chance. It seems (Klinsmann) has given me that. I’m just trying to take advantage of that.

"It’s been a lot of fun, and I’m just trying to fit in and do whatever’s asked of me and work hard.”